Call me an Indian Pakistani
I recently wrote a blog post titled ‘An Indian who moved to Pakistan‘. The response I got – positive and negative – is much appreciated. It inspired me to write this piece about my dream of a world without borders and wars. Before I begin, however, I want to make clear that I do not have any desire to undermine the sovereign and political borders between India and Pakistan or between any other countries. My dream is to erase the psychological borders that are etched in our minds in the shape of prejudices and hatred towards the other. So I’ll get to ...
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Pakistan’s trouble can never be India’s gain
We don’t see Pakistan speaking in one voice very often; different stakeholders react differently to a given situation depending upon their interest and political leaning. However, the killing of 24 Pakistani soldiers at the hands of Nato a few weeks ago united the Pakistani population in their collective grief. People sick and tired of the western design demanded in one voice a complete overhaul of the relationship with the US. But this development has elicited varied reactions in India. Some vocal sections have reacted with glee at the discomfort of its western neighbour. Below is an excerpt from a blog published ...
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Teacher, don’t stand so close to me
We’ve all done it when we were awkward and fourteen. The teacher was probably not even young or good looking. But we did it for approval, for love, for a better grade, to be admired. A student of mine alerted me to an interested phenomenon recently. There was this girl who was most sober in my class, did her work, took copious notes, wrote at college level, her glasses high on her nose, she looked like she had just stepped out of Hajj. My student told me in reference to her: “You should see her in the Eco teacher’s class. ...
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You are so not Prince Charming
The more I interact with men, the more I realize how loathsome they are. They usually have just one thing on their minds when talking to a woman – no – make that always, and it doesn’t require a lot of imagination to think what it is. Why, I ask is that? I understand that it might have a little to do with biology and chemistry and some other sciences but it gets boring, mundane and repetitive. Even if a man has the power to hold my attention for more than a few hours with his intellect and humor, by the end ...
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Video blog: Own2feet
To call the current US-Pak relationship dysfunctional would, indeed, be an understatement. The recent statement of the US Secretary of Defense, saying that there is no choice but to maintain a good relationship with Pakistan sums up the current state of this relationship perfectly; both are unwilling partners. If the status quo of the US-Pak relationship is to be challenged, a change in attitudes must occur in both countries. Pakistan needs to stop being portrayed as a delusional and terrorist country, in the US, and the justified grievances of Pakistanis with the US foreign policy must be appreciated. Furthermore, on ...
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Doctor se Rishta: A modest proposal
Recently a friend posted a Facebook link that read: “Gift-find for the single South Asian women on Facebook.” Falling into all the above categories – South Asian, female, and single – I felt obliged to follow his instructions, which led me to an online matrimonial service. Great, I thought. Just what the free world needs: another run-of-the-mill, Shaadi.com spin-off promising compatibility in the form of a mutual love for puppies, aloo ke parathay and Bollywood. But, after giving the website a proper look-see, I realised I had miscalculated. This was not your typical vanilla, hackneyed online dating site. No, this website came with ...
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Help! My boyfriend won’t cuddle
Dear Miss Informed, Help me understand why my boyfriend has time for work at his father’s clinic, his cousin’s wedding, his own side business and to pick his mom from Nano’s place and to drop his brother to school – but no space for me in his life? He doesn’t have time to call or even text. Just a brief ‘good morning’ and “Baby, I am so tired, let’s sleep. Goodnight” Miss Informed, I know he loves me but why do I always have to be the one to understand his problems? Sometimes I wish he would spoil me, pamper me and do cheesy ...
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Sino-Pak relations: Beyond the rhetoric
Just a day after the US suspended $800 million aid to Pakistan, a news story appeared in major newspapers of the subcontinent. In Pakistan it read, China has pledged support to Pakistan when US has suspended its assistance. In India it read, Pakistan would be leaning on the Chinese to fill in the gap created by suspension of US aid and the Chinese would acquiesce. What actually happened was that Hong Lei, spokesman of Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while answering questions during a routine briefing responded to a US aid suspension question in a very measured way. While avoiding commenting on ...
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The Capital Vulture: The merits of being out of love in Islamabad
When it happens, when it’s the real deal, life morphs into a crooning Ella Fitzgerald tune- walk my way and a thousand violins begin to play. Everything is mysterious and new; Islamabad, reborn, feels less confining and the colours and foliage transport the love onto some Dionysian fantasy- all perfection and pleasure’s fair game. This, the good love everyone’s mad for that makes you feel safe and unbelievably attractive (it’s all those rushing endorphins pinching the cheeks). But I’m here to tell you it’s not worth it. Keep the lovers in different cities or countries, ideally, or just stay single. A ...
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Huma Abedin: Refusing to be humiliated
Generally, the world loves to side with famous women whose celebrity husbands’ extramarital escapades are chronicled by scandalous headlines. Judging by the smorgasbord of sympathetic magazine covers, TV chatter and internet buzz that supported the marital tribulations of Maria Shriver-Kennedy-Schwarznegger (her ‘Governorator’ husband’s affair with their housekeeper that resulted in a ten-year-old son), Elin Nordegren-Woods (whose golfer husband Tiger’d it out with countless prostitutes) and, of course, Jennifer Aniston-Pitt (who continues to get public sympathy six years after the Brangelina coupling), Huma Abedin-Weiner should be the public’s darling by now. Instead, she seems to be bearing the brunt of the ...
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